Samsung Starts First of Three Major Projects, Moves Up Production Timeline by One Year to Mass-Produce Seventh-Generation HBM in 2028

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong has unveiled plans to transform the Onyang campus in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, South Korea, into a core production base for next-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM). To meet the explosive demand for AI chips, Samsung Electronics will move up the start of production at this brand-new HBM plant in Onyang by about one year from the original schedule, setting it for June 2028. At the groundbreaking ceremony for the HBM plant at the Asan Onyang campus on the 12th, Lee Jae-yong said: "We will transform this campus, which previously focused mainly on simple assembly and testing of general-purpose chips, into a core base for high-end HBM, making it the heart of AI semiconductors."

The groundbreaking ceremony was held under the name "Chungcheong Region Major Project Groundbreaking Ceremony" and was presided over by South Korean President Lee Jae-myung. This is the first of three major projects pursued by the Samsung Group to break ground, coming 133 days after the Chungcheong region investment plan was announced on July 2. Guests in attendance included Jeon Young-hyun, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics' Device Solutions (DS) Division; Kim Yong-kwan, President in charge of management strategy for the DS Division; Lee Chung, President of Samsung Display; Choi Joo-sun, President of Samsung SDI; and Jang Deok-hyun, President of Samsung Electro-Mechanics.

Line 5 at the Onyang campus, where construction is now underway, will build a three-story cleanroom with a total area of about 9,400 pyeong. Samsung Electronics plans to mass-produce next-generation products such as HBM4E, the seventh generation of HBM, there. As memory demand for AI servers rises rapidly, Samsung aims to lock in advanced packaging capacity in advance and strengthen its competitiveness in the HBM supply market.

The Samsung Group plans a total investment of 140 trillion won to cultivate high-end industries in the Chungcheong region. Of that, Samsung Electronics will contribute 56 trillion won to build five HBM production lines in Onyang, expand HBM supporting facilities in Cheonan, and upgrade existing production facilities; Samsung Display will invest 67 trillion won in Asan to build production bases for next-generation mobile screens and ultra-high-resolution microdisplay products; Samsung Electro-Mechanics plans to invest 8 trillion won in Sejong by 2040 to build production lines for AI server semiconductor packaging substrates; and Samsung SDI plans to invest 9 trillion won to develop its battery business in Cheonan.